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It's a curious thing, but it's true. Of 20th-21st century GOP presidents (excluding Trump--jury is still out), none are more reviled by the left than Herbert Hoover, Richard Nixon, and George W. Bush.
The truth is that all three were well left of center.
Hoover got his political start under liberalism's godfather, Woodrow Wilson. FDR, also in the Wilson admin, said of Hoover: "He is certainly a wonder, and I wish we could make him President.... There could not be a better one." Rexford Tugwell, top aide to FDR, said 40 years later in an interview: "We didn't admit it at the time, but practically the whole New Deal was extrapolated from programs that Hoover started." Hoover was immortalized as an object of left-wing hate with a mention in the lyrics of Archie Bunker's theme song.
Nixon was arguably to the left of Obama. He was on record supporting a national ban on handguns. He initiated federal affirmative action. He imposed wage and price controls, which I don't think Obama would have dared to attempt. Nixon, like Nancy Pelosi, Dianne Feinstein, and Chuck Schumer, was a fan of the so-called 'fairness doctrine' (FCC censorship). That particular policy was killed by Reagan. Nixon is still hated by left-wingers almost 50 years later. Just search 'Nixon' in this very forum to see.
W. Bush may well be the most reviled of the three. Reagan said, "government is not the solution to our problems; government is the problem." W Bush said, "We have a responsibility that when somebody hurts, government has got to move." He pushed through "No Child Left Behind" with the help of Sen. Ted Kennedy. This was technically a re-authorization of LBJ's 'Elementary and Secondary Education Act' of 1965, which was a pillar of LBJ's 'Great Society.' Bush may be the only GOP president to have created a new entitlement (Medicare Part D). No comment really necessary on the extent of lefty hatred for W.
I find it fascinating that these three liberal Republicans draw so much ire from the left. Why is that?
I've posted this before...A Cato econ writer named Steven Slivinski used OMB data to calculate federal spending growth for 7 presidents, from LBJ to W. Bush.
W. Bush was second only to LBJ in total spending growth. Nixon/Ford was fourth. But Slivinski then calculated federal spending growth minus entitlements and national security. Arguably presidents can't always control those two areas. For example Nixon inherited a war from his 2 Democratic predecessors, and W Bush had to deal with 9/11 early in his first term. Entitlements are 'auto pilot spending' and thus a problem to control.
By this measure, Nixon/Ford were tops at 6.4% spending growth, and W. Bush was second at 4.5%. Reagan was lowest at -1.4%, the only of the seven presidents to have a negative sign next to the number.
Most folks don't understand the economics and policies. Just gut reaction to social stances and when applicable, war. And while they were left of many Democrats, I would not say they were left of center. American politics as a whole is heavily skewed to the right, both Republicans and Democrats.
I've posted this before...A Cato econ writer named Steven Slivinski used OMB data to calculate federal spending growth for 7 presidents, from LBJ to W. Bush.
W. Bush was second only to LBJ in total spending growth. Nixon/Ford was fourth. But Slivinski then calculated federal spending growth minus entitlements and national security. Arguably presidents can't always control those two areas. For example Nixon inherited a war from his 2 Democratic predecessors, and W Bush had to deal with 9/11 early in his first term. Entitlements are 'auto pilot spending' and thus a problem to control.
By this measure, Nixon/Ford were tops at 6.4% spending growth, and W. Bush was second at 4.5%. Reagan was lowest at -1.4%, the only of the seven presidents to have a negative sign next to the number.
Hilarious analysis, love how you or he tries to shape the data to try and make Reagan look good.
Thread fail. By any metric TRump is the most hated POTUS in modern history.
Only about 20% of the population support Trump. The rest are either uninterested in politics or pretty much hate Trump.
Trump has the worst poll numbers of any modern POTUS.
Trump is the ONLY POTUS to fail to get his first major policy bill passed, he failed and then failed and the failed again before finally passing his first policy bill (look it up kids it now a matter of historical record, a record Trump will never shake.)
so thread fail, because the OP opens incorrectly claiming "the jury is still out" and that is BS, the public has overwhelmingly rejected Trump. The public does not believe he is a good leader and they do not believe he was fairly elected they do not believe he is honest.
The majority of the US public who have an opinion, don't support Trump.
It's a curious thing, but it's true. Of 20th-21st century GOP presidents (excluding Trump--jury is still out), none are more reviled by the left than Herbert Hoover, Richard Nixon, and George W. Bush.
The truth is that all three were well left of center.
#1 None of them were "well left of center" in their own time.
#2 They were either incompetent, or crooked.
#3 They were wedded to the Republican ideals of their day, which is reason enough to revile them.
But the ones reviled the most are Nixon, Reagan and Trump, because each of them in their own way betrayed the country and people of the USA.
It's a curious thing, but it's true. Of 20th-21st century GOP presidents (excluding Trump--jury is still out), none are more reviled by the left than Herbert Hoover, Richard Nixon, and George W. Bush.
The truth is that all three were well left of center.
Hoover got his political start under liberalism's godfather, Woodrow Wilson. FDR, also in the Wilson admin, said of Hoover: "He is certainly a wonder, and I wish we could make him President.... There could not be a better one." Rexford Tugwell, top aide to FDR, said 40 years later in an interview: "We didn't admit it at the time, but practically the whole New Deal was extrapolated from programs that Hoover started." Hoover was immortalized as an object of left-wing hate with a mention in the lyrics of Archie Bunker's theme song.
Nixon was arguably to the left of Obama. He was on record supporting a national ban on handguns. He initiated federal affirmative action. He imposed wage and price controls, which I don't think Obama would have dared to attempt. Nixon, like Nancy Pelosi, Dianne Feinstein, and Chuck Schumer, was a fan of the so-called 'fairness doctrine' (FCC censorship). That particular policy was killed by Reagan. Nixon is still hated by left-wingers almost 50 years later. Just search 'Nixon' in this very forum to see.
W. Bush may well be the most reviled of the three. Reagan said, "government is not the solution to our problems; government is the problem." W Bush said, "We have a responsibility that when somebody hurts, government has got to move." He pushed through "No Child Left Behind" with the help of Sen. Ted Kennedy. This was technically a re-authorization of LBJ's 'Elementary and Secondary Education Act' of 1965, which was a pillar of LBJ's 'Great Society.' Bush may be the only GOP president to have created a new entitlement (Medicare Part D). No comment really necessary on the extent of lefty hatred for W.
I find it fascinating that these three liberal Republicans draw so much ire from the left. Why is that?
None of those guys are "left of center" or particularly liberal.
All of them had major debacles that merit criticism and justifiably so - and will be judged accordingly in history - regardless of ideological placement.
Hoover - his response to the Depression
Nixon - Watergate (obviously)
W Bush - going to war in Iraq as a justification for 9-11
The labels "liberal" and "conservative" are often just pop politics buzzwords.
Nixon was committed to the Great Society, which was just an extension of the New Deal. That doesn't necessarily make him a liberal, it just meant he was not a radical. At the time many conservative Republicans were committed to the New Deal/Great Society because it was part of the post-war consensus, and even seen as necessary in fighting Communism, to a certain extent. His support for civil rights can be seen in light of that, even though he also attempted to lure disgruntled southern voters, at the same time he was attacking tax-exemption for religious schools that were segregationist.
Nixon isn't vilified by liberals in general so much as by the press and political pundits. The corruption in his administration was scandalous at the time when it was revealed, and it stained his political legacy, even among moderates and conservatives.
I think most of the left's views of Bush have softened, especially in light of the Trump presidency. Mostly, people were angered by his reckless foreign interventionism. Overall, he was a conservative and not on the left, on many things in fact he was very much on the hard right, such as his engagement with the religious right's agenda, at a time when Americans were becoming much more religiously and culturally diverse.
Last edited by DT113876; 07-26-2018 at 07:59 PM..
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